Start Over
by WILDNWET
Summary: Stefan left Elena at home with their two kids, leaving her to provide for them alone. Now trying to get her life back on track after coming out of an abusive relationship, Elena does everything she can to better their future. That's until her husband's older brother walks through the front door for a little visit. Now Elena is left confused on where to go and what to do. (Delena)
1. Chapter 1

So this is a new story i'm writing, not sure if it I will continue though. Based on the reviews if you wants me to then I will :) Please review and enjoy!

_Italics _are flashbacks by the way!

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><p>Chapter 1<p>

"_I can't do this anymore Stefan," Elena said, tears in her eyes. _

"_What're you talking about?" he asked standing up from his spot on the couch and walking towards her. _

_Elena took a deep breath, "I refuse to be treated the way I am. Either you quit with the drinking and violent behavior, or I'll take action," she said confident._

_Stefan snickered, "You're going to take action?" he asked with an amused look on his face. "And what would that be? You're going to tell your little brother? What's he going to do? You going to call the cops? Good luck with that," he turned away from her and made his way back to the couch._

"_Stefan," Elena said. He ignored her and continued to the couch to finish his beer. "Stefan!" she screamed. He quickly turned around and walked over to her, fast. _

"_Who the hell do you think your talking to?" he screamed in her face. She held her hands up to his chest and tried pushing him away from her. He grabbed both her wrist that lay on his chest and removed them. His grip tightened and he pushed her back into the coffee table. _

"_Don't touch me!" she screamed from her spot on the floor. No matter how much pain she was in right now, she refused to break. Broken glass was on the ground from her falling on the table and some of it stabbing into her back. Elena pushed herself up from the floor and walked away from him and into the kitchen. She wiped the tears falling from her eyes. "I'm leaving Stefan."_

_Stefan followed her into the kitchen, "Baby, without me you're nothing." He started walking towards her slowly. _

"_Don't," she said, holding up a finger and pointing it at him. She grabbed a glass cup from the cabinet and filled it with water from the sink. She put it to her lips and took a long drink from it. Before she knew it, Stefan swung and knocked it out of her hand. It shattered on the ground with glass and water everywhere. Elena put a finger on her lip where she now felt blood. _

"_You're gonna listen to me Elena. You're not leaving me. You're staying here with the kids and you're gonna be a wife, just like you've always wanted to be."_

"_You don't own me Stefan," she said through clenched teeth._

"_You do what I say!" he yelled, raising a hand and slapped her across the face. She instantly grabbed her right cheek and held it. It wasn't the first smack she's received from him, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt any less. It stung and she felt her face get hot. She felt her heart pounding and she never broke eye contact with Stefan. "Understand?" he asked her. _

"_Screw you," she spat and walked past him. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him. _

"_You think I like doing this Elena? You're just so damn stubborn!" _

"_Let go of me!" She yelled trying to pull her arm out of his grasp. "Stefan, you're hurting me," she barley got out as he twisted her arm. "Please, I'm sorry," she begged._

"_Now was that so hard?" he asked releasing her arm. He left her alone in the kitchen as he made his way into the living room, where he'd probably end up getting drunk for the night. _

_Elena took a shaky breath and leaned against the refrigerator. She slowly slid down it and her body racked with tears. How much more of this would she be able to handle?_

"Happy birthday princess," Elena whispered in her daughter's ear as she woke her up. Her now three-year-old rolled over and groaned, "Come on Hailie, time to get up silly." The young girl stretched in her bed and sat up.

"I'm 4 today," she smiled brightly and held up four fingers. Elena smiled and picked up her daughter.

"That's right, now we have to get your dressed for your party today." Elena carried her over to the closet and sat her on the floor. She picked out a black ruffled skirt and a white shirt with a cheetah print heart in the center. "Alrighty, let's go," she smiled and took her daughters hand in hers.

Next stop was to her son's room. Parker was sleeping soundly in his big blue bed with stuffed animals surrounding him. "Parker!" Hailie yelled as she ran onto his bed and sat down next to him. "It's my birthday! Get up! We gonna party!"

The small boy rolled over and opened his eyes. Elena picked him up and dressed him in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. She walked downstairs with both her kids and into the living room. The very same living room she spent so much time in. The room her and Stefan shared so many memories in.

The Salvatore house.

She sighed and put Parker on the floor, where he took off with Hailie and ran around. Elena tied her hair back into a ponytail and walked into the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out the orange juice.

"Jesus Christ!" she yelled and grabbed her chest when she turned around. Standing behind her was the one and only, Damon. "You scared me."

"Good to see you too," he smiled at her.

"How'd you get in here?" she asked him, clearly surprised he was standing in her kitchen. To be honest, she didn't like the fact that he showed up unannounced to her house.

"You know, I used to live here too, I know where the spare key is," he winked at her.

"Then I guess I better change the hiding spot."

"Now why would you want to do that?" he asked taking the cup of orange juice Elena poured for herself and drank it.

"I don't know, maybe so creeps like you don't just show up in my house?"

"Yeah, you never know who lurks around in Mystic Falls," he smirked.

"What're you doing here Damon?" Elena asked annoyed.

"Well, it is my baby bro's kid's birthday today. Today is the kid's birthday right?" Damon asked, doubt creeping onto his face that it wasn't her birthday today.

"Yeah, but you three years late," she remarked.

"So what? I didn't show up to the last three parties. But in my defense, I never got a party invitation," He said holding his hands up, Elena smiled at him as she put the juice in the fridge.

"Mommy!" a voice yelled as feet ran into the kitchen. Hailie stopped in her tracks at the strange man sitting in the kitchen.

"Boo," he whispered to her, causing her to run to her mother. "Easy kid, I'm not a killer," he held his hands up in defense and laughed.

"Hailie, this is Uncle Damon. He's daddy's brother," Elena introduced him to her.

"Speaking of baby bro, where is he?" Damon asked.

Elena shot him a look, "Not now Damon." Elena picked Hailie up and adjusted her on her hip. "Aunt Caroline will be here any minute now to help decorating, isn't that gonna be fun?"

"Yes!" Hailie exclaimed.

"I'm here!" Caroline announced herself as she walked in with her hands full of bags. She stopped in her tracks when she spotted Damon, "What's he doing here?" she asked Elena, confused.

"Good to see you too, Barbie. And _he_ is here because it's Emily-"

"Hailie," Elena corrected him.

"_Hailie's _birthday," he finished. Caroline rolled her eyes and put all the bags on the kitchen table. She pulled streamers, balloons, signs, and poster paper out of the bags.

"Let's get started," she smiled.

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><p>Hailie and Parker were coloring while Elena hung streamers down the staircase and Caroline hung signs up around the house that read <em>Happy Birthday. <em>Damon on the other hand was sitting and watching while nursing a beer.

"You know, you could help," Caroline said throwing a plastic bag full of balloons that had to be blown up at him. "Start blowing them up." He groaned but reluctantly sat up and starting blowing up the balloons.

"I'm getting light-headed," he complained a few minutes later.

"Man up," Elena told him and retrieved the six balloons he already blew up. She scattered them around the house and went back to help him finish up. "Bonnie will be here soon," she told him.

"What is this, a reunion or something?"

"No one told you to come," she shrugged. "Did you even bring a present?" she asked.

"Of course I did," he said rudely and pulled out a crumpled ten-dollar bill and gave it to her. She rolled her eyes and accepted it, placing it on the table next to her.

"Bonnie's here!" Caroline announced as her other best friend walked through the door with a party bag in her hands.

"Elena," Bonnie said, sympathy on her face.

"What's wrong?" Elena asked from her spot on the couch.

"This was in front of the door," she said holding up a small box with wrapping paper around it. "It's from… Stefan."

"He was here? Why didn't he come in or something?" Elena asked standing up and walking over to Bonnie. She took the present out of her hand and looked at the tag. "It's for Hailie. Did you see him Bonnie?"

"No," Bonnie shook her head. "It was there when I pulled up." Elena nodded in understanding with a sad smile. "Elena…"

"No, I'm fine," Elena said putting on a front. "I'm gonna go check on the food," she said walking out of the living room and into the kitchen.

"What does she mean go check on food? She isn't even cooking anything," Damon said.

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious," Caroline replied sourly. She rolled her eyes and went back to decorating the house. Bonnie sighed uncomfortably and went over to the kids.

"Happy birthday Hailie," she smiled and handed her a birthday bag. Hailie smiled excitedly and opened it to see her present. Her eyes lit up at the sight of the doll she wanted.

"Thank you Aunt Bonnie!" she exclaimed and jumped up to hug her aunt.

"No problem sweetheart," Bonnie replied hugging the young girl back.

Elena stood over a pot boiling water in the kitchen. She tried to remain calm for her kid's sake. How could Stefan just come and go like that on his kid's birthday? She heard heavy footsteps approaching her. She stood up straighter and shook off the thoughts. "You don't have to pretend to be okay," a husky voice said from behind her.

"If I don't then who will?" she asked.

"You've known those people out there your whole life. Sorry sweetheart, but you ain't fooling any of them."

"Well if I pretend that I'm okay, sooner or later I'll start believing it Damon."

"And how do you know that it will work?"

"Because Damon!" she yelled, and quickly regretted it. "Because, it works every other time." She looked into his deep blue eyes. The ones she always got lost in.


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow! 10 reviews on the first chapter? Thanks guys! It means a lot to me, please review this one too! :)**

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><p>Chapter 2<p>

"_It's a girl!" Elena quickly relaxed, her head falling back onto her pillow. Her breathing was still uneven and she was in pain. "Say hi to mommy," Stefan said to the infant as he held her up for Elena to see. In Stefan's two hands was a small screaming and crying body. Elena smiled as happy tears came to her eyes. _

"_I wanna hold her," Elena breathed out. Stefan nodded and quickly wrapped her small body up in the nearby blanket. He moved over to the side of the bed by Elena and gave the baby to her. "Hi," she whispered as she rubbed her baby's cheek with her finger. "What're we going to name her?" she asked Stefan._

"_Whatever you want," Stefan told her. _

"_Let's see… Karen? Do you like that?" Elena asked the baby. "Or… Lilly? How about… Rose? Ava? Sarah?"_

"_Sarah's nice," Stefan said._

"_You like that? Sarah? Huh?" She asked the infant in her arms. She cooed and Elena laughed, "Then it's settled, Sarah Salvatore." _

"_I'm gonna go wash my hands," Stefan said making his way to the bathroom. When Elena felt the contractions come on she quickly woke Stefan from his sleep. It was 4 in the morning and the baby was ready. A little bit too ready perhaps. They didn't have time to make it to a hospital, so the baby was born right in Elena and Stefan's bedroom, in their bed. Elena held the baby in her arms and looked at her, she was so perfect. The little bit of hair on her head had a slight curl to it and it was light brown. She waved her tiny fists in the air and started crying again. Elena hushed the baby gently rocked her. _

"_It's alright love," she said softly to the baby. Moments later Stefan returned, fresh sheets in his arms and he approached the bed. He took the baby out of Elena's arms while she shakily stood up and made her way over to the dresser, putting out clean clothes. "I'm gonna clean up," she informed Stefan and then walked to the bathroom._

_Stefan looked down at the baby in his arms. He was astounded; this was a creation of his. He smiled down at her as she started crying again. "It's okay, it's okay…" he repeated, waiting for Elena to return. She only took a few minutes to change her clothes and come back into the room. _

"_I like Hailie," Elena announced. "Hailie Sarah Salvatore."_

"_Hailie?" Stefan repeated. "Alright, Hailie Sarah Salvatore."_

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><p>"Time for cake!" Elena announced to her house full of kids running around. All the little kids screamed and ran into the kitchen for the cake. Hailie took the spot next to Damon and Elena placed the cake in front of her. Everybody sang her happy birthday and she blew out the candles on her cake with a smile. Elena cut the cake and handed everybody a piece.<p>

The kids retired to the living room to watch a movie and the adults stayed in the kitchen. Elena was sitting on the kitchen counter, Bonnie and Caroline at the kitchen table, and Jeremy and Klaus outside. "So I think she's having fun," Elena said referring to Hailie.

"Yeah, at least she hasn't asked about Stefan yet," Bonnie agreed. "Has he called or anything since he left the present?"

"Nope," Elena said popping the 'p' as she said it. "I miss him," she spoke quietly. The mood in the room quickly shifted. They all turned their heads to the back door as it shut. In walked Damon holding a can of beer.

"This sucks," he said holding it up. "Really? Coors Light? Who drinks this shit? You have to get the real stuff," he told Elena. She rolled her eyes at him. "So, when does everyone leave? I'd like to have my house back."

"The party ends soon Damon, the kids are watching a movie and then parents will be here to pick them up," Elena informed him. "_You're _house? Last I checked, you moved because, and I quote, 'This house is a piece of shit, it's too big and old.'"

"Well maybe I changed my mind," he shrugged. "So Blondie," he said to Caroline. "You and Klaus, huh? How's that going? I went to high school with the kid, real asshole."

"For your information, Klaus is nothing but a gentleman to me. He's changed a lot since his high school years," Caroline spoke up for her fiancée. Damon shrugged and took another sip of his beer, crinkling his face at the taste of it as he did so. Elena walked over to where Damon was by the fridge and grabbed a water bottle.

"And you miss Bonnie, you and Gilbert? _Really?" _

"Hey!" Elena yelled and smacked Damon in his arm. "Leave Jeremy alone, him and Bonnie are happy together."

"_Ow_," he said dramatically and held his arm. He put his now empty beer can down on the counter and took Elena's water bottle. He opened it and drank more than half of it in one chug.

"Do you mind?" Elena asked annoyed. He was acting like a child today.

"Nope," he smirked and gave it back to her. She held it up to inspect it, seeing only about two sips left in it. Elena rolled her eyes and put it on the counter, no longer thirsty. The four adults stood in the kitchen in an awkward silence.

"So," Caroline said dragging her 'o'. "I'm gonna go see what Klaus is doing."

"Yeah, I think I should go see what Jeremy is doing too," Bonnie agreed and stood up, following Caroline outside. Elena gave them a look for leaving her alone in the kitchen alone with Damon. He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed loudly.

"Seriously, what they hell do you want?" Elena asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Mommy!" Parker, Elena and Stefan's nearly two year old yelled, wobbling into the kitchen. "Ma!" he smiled as he reached Elena and put his arms out for her to pick him up. She smiled at her youngest and bent down to pick him up. God, he looked just like Stefan. The image of Stefan ran through her head and she smiled sadly at Parker. Damon seemed to catch this and gave her a questioning look.

"Stop looking at me like that," she told him and he chuckled in response. "I'm serious. Stop laughing."

When Hailie's party ended, Bonnie and Caroline stayed for an extra hour before they took off. Damon left before them and still hadn't returned to the house. Elena, Hailie, and Parker were all sitting on the living room floor with blankets and pillows surrounding them. All three of them were in their pajamas and enjoying Chinese takeout with a fire burning behind them. It was dim in the large living room and they were all laughing enjoying themselves. Elena put her noodles down and went to retrieve the present Stefan left.

"Hey Hailie, daddy left this for you," Elena said handing the box to Hailie. She eagerly took it and ripped off the wrapping paper. It was a small black jewelry box. She opened it and inside was a necklace.

The necklace.

The one Stefan gave Elena when he first met her in high school. It was a silver talisman with a red gem in the center. Tears welled up in her eyes as she watched Hailie take the necklace out of the box and hold it up. "This looks old and dirty," she said with a look. Elena laughed at her daughter.

"Daddy gave mommy that necklace a long time ago," Elena told her.

"Why don't you have it still?" she asked with questioning eyes.

_Elena sat on the floor of the living room waiting for Stefan to return. She had the fireplace going, take out food on the floor, and blankets and pillows all around her. It was something she and Stefan often did as a Saturday date night. Two-year-old Hailie was asleep in her bed and a few months old Parker was up in his room sleeping. The night was going as planned, until Stefan didn't show up. She ran one hand through her hair as her other one fingered the charm hanging off her necklace. She wore it everyday since Stefan had giving it to her in high school. She was just about to get up and throw the food out when the front door opened and slammed close. In stumbled a drunken Stefan. _

"_Where have you been?" she asked from her spot on the floor. He walked over to her without falling and pointed a finger at her._

"_Where have you been?" he slurred and laughed. Elena stood up and went closer to him. _

"_What the hell Stefan? It's almost mid-night, did you forget about date-night? I've been waiting since 9."_

"_Oh, just shut the hell up," he said annoyed. _

_Elena crossed her arms over her chest and took a deep breath, "Don't talk to me like that." _

_He rolled his eyes, "I'll talk to you how ever I want to. Listen, sorry I missed the crappy date-night we have every Saturday." Did he seriously just say that? _

"_Well maybe I wanted to spice this one up," she said, un-tying her black robe to show him her matching black bra and panties. _

_He laughed, "Loose 20 pounds and then maybe I'll consider touching you." She quickly covered herself up with the robe. She had given birth only two months ago, it wasn't like she was even fat. She now only weigh 140, the baby weight was shedding quickly. Elena suddenly felt enraged. _

"_Listen asshole, I gave you two awesome ass kids, and anyone would be more than happy to touch this. Who knows, maybe while you were out I had someone over here," she said confidently, although she knew she would never consider cheating on Stefan, but he didn't know that. In one motion, her head turned to the left and her cheek stung. He slapped her. A tear ran down her cheek and she held her red cheek, staring at him blankly. _

"_Whore," he called her. No one had ever called her that. She felt like trash right about now. _

"_Stefan-"_

"_I don't wanna hear it Elena!" he screamed._

"_But I-"_

"_Did I just not fucking say I don't want to hear it?" he yelled while grabbing her shoulders and shook her. He pushed her back with all his might and she slammed hard on the ground. She lay there, unable to move due to the pain. He walked over to his helpless wife and bent down next to her. He brought his hand up to the necklace around her neck and yanked it off. "If you need me I'll be upstairs sleeping." _

_He winked at her before stuffing the necklace in his pocket and walking up the staircase to their room. _

Elena looked at he daughter. "I thought I lost it, daddy must've found it," she easily lied. Hailie nodded, believing her, and gave her mother the necklace. Elena crawled over to her and latched the necklace around Hailie's neck. "It's beautiful."

"Who, me? Yeah, I already know that Elena, no need to tell the kids. I'm sure they don't want to hear their mom's perverted thoughts," Damon said walking into the living room. Elena hadn't heard the front door open or close.

She blushed, "No a-s-s- hole," she spelled out the first part. "I wasn't talking about you."

"Yeah, mama was talking about my necklace!" Hailie yelled standing up with her hands on her hips as she yelled at Damon. Elena stifled a laugh as Damon rolled his eye and walked over to the three of them.

"What're you guys doing? There is a kitchen you know."

"We have a dinner out here every Saturday night," Elena said. "But I think it's time for bed," she said looking at an already sleeping Parker. She scooped him up and Hailie ran for the stairs. Elena followed her up them and put Parker in his room first. Then she went into Hailie's room. "Night sweetie," she said tucking her into bed.

"Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"When is that guy gonna leave?" Hailie asked, referring to Damon.

Elena shrugged, "That's daddy's brother, so he's allowed to come here whenever he wants, this is his house too. Goodnight." She kissed her daughter on the cheek followed by turning the light off and leaving the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry for the wait everyone! But here is chapter 3, please review telling me what you think, enjoy!

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><p>Chapter 3<p>

Elena sighed as she walked back downstairs and into the living room. Surprisingly, it was completely clean. No more food containers, pillows, or blankets were scattered all over the floor. Instead, Damon sat on the couch with his eyes closed.

"You didn't have to clean all that, I would have," she said sitting down next to him. He opened his eyes and looked at her and shrugged. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. So Mrs. Salvatore, where is this mister?"

"It's Gilbert, and he's not here."

"_Obviously, _but _where _is he?"

"I don't know." Damon looked at her with a questioning look. "Look Damon, let's just say that things between me and him didn't work out."

"And he just left? Then why did you seem so upset this morning when he left a stupid present for the kid?"

"I love Stefan always have, always will. But he changed and it changed our relationship. To be honest, I'm not sure why he left, but he did."

"Care to elaborate?" he asked.

"Jesus," she rolled her eyes. "After I gave birth to Hailie, things were great for the first year. Then we found out that I was pregnant again and we were tight on cash. Stefan felt as if he had to support us, and he went down hill. He put too much pressure on himself and that resulted in him lashing out. And when I gave birth to Parker, Stefan became a complete ass." Elena explained.

Damon was completely lost. "So, explain to me why he left, will ya?"

"One night, things got really bad. He hit Hailie, and I think that's what triggered his leaving. He snapped out of his craze and just stared at her. Then he left without a word, left all his clothes and everything, and he didn't come home."

"That asshole," he muttered. Elena shifted uncomfortably, why had she shared that with him? "Was she okay?" he asked with genuine concern, Elena nodded and a look of relief washed over his face. "Well I'm gonna go to bed. My room is still available right?"

"Well about that. I actually started sleeping in there after Stefan left. I had too many bad memories in his room where we slept," she stated embarrassed.

"Oh," he commented, a little surprised. "It's fine, I'll sleep on the couch. Go get some sleep Elena."

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><p>"<em>Just hold him and he will stop crying!" Elena screamed at her husband. Here she was in the kitchen trying to make breakfast. She burnt the toast, the bacon was over cooked, and the smoke detectors were going off from the smoke. Parker was screaming his head off and Hailie was banging pots in the kitchen. And Stefan sat on his ass in a chair complaining. <em>

_Hailie was 2, almost three and Parker was 1. Parker had the flu and was constantly crying, wanting to be held. He sat in his highchair crying and screaming his head off for some attention. _

"_Daddy!" Hailie yelled over her banging pots. "I make music!" _

"_Elena! Turn the fucking thing off!" he yelled pointing to the smoke detector. She took a hand towel and began waving it in the air, trying to get rid of the smoke. _

"_I'm trying Stefan!" she yelled back. He put his head in his hands and groaned, his hangover was killing him and this noise wasn't helping. Elena grabbed a broom and hit the smoke detector with it, finally silencing it. _

"_Music!" Hailie screamed and banged two pots together making an extremely loud noise. Elena had just reached Parker and picked him up silencing his crying, when Hailie started screaming. Elena quickly turned around to see what had happened. Stefan was standing with a scared look on his face as he looked down at Hailie. She was lying on the ground with a broken plate around her. Elena placed Parker back in his highchair and rushed to Hailie's side. _

"_Elena, I didn't mean too," Stefan said in shock. Elena grabbed Hailie and held her as she sat on the floor. She gathered Hailie into her arms and inspected her for any serious injuries. _

"_What did you do?" She yelled._

"_I didn't mean too," he repeated._

"_STEFAN!" She screamed as loud as she could. _

"_I-I-I just grabbed the plate and threw it in her direction, I wasn't thinking," he said kneeling down by Elena and Hailie. He put a hand on Hailie's head and brushed back her hair, only for Elena to push him away. "Please, I didn't mean too."_

"_Stop Stefan! Just stop!" Elena cried. She stood up holding Hailie with one arm and held Parker in her other and carried them into the living room. She placed both them on the couch and returned back in the kitchen for an icepack. _

_Stefan was gone._

"_Stefan?" she called out. No answer. "Stefan?" she tried again. Still nothing. _

_That was the last time she saw Stefan Salvatore._

Elena woke up in a cold sweat. She quickly sat up and looked around the room. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail to get it out of her face and she got up out of her bed. Quietly, she made her way down the creaky staircase and into the living room. The fire was still burning and Damon was sound asleep on the couch. She walked into the kitchen and got herself a glass of water to calm her nerves. It seemed that ever since Stefan had left, she'd been having dreams of all the abuse he caused. It was too much for her to handle. Looking at the clock on the wall, she saw that it read 5 am. _Great,_ she had work in an hour. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep she decided to go take a shower. She walked down the hall to the bathroom and set the water. She stepped in and let the steaming hot water wash over her body. She rested her head against the wall and relaxed. When had life gotten so hard?

20 minutes later she turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. She ran her fingers through her wet tangled hair and put it in a towel.

"Shit! Sorry!" Damon said. Elena turned around quickly and saw Damon standing there in the doorway.

"Damon!" she exclaimed and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around her exposed body. "Don't you know how to knock?"

"Well I had to take a piss and who the hell up is at 5:30 in the morning anyway?"

"Me," she said walking past him and out of the bathroom. "Pig."

"It's not like I haven't seen any of that before!" he called to her with an amused look on his face. Although he couldn't see, Elena blushed and hurried upstairs.

Sadly to her, it was true. This wasn't the first time he had seen her naked. But in her defense, she was drunk when it happened.

_Elena nursed a red cup in her hand as she leaned against a wall for support. Elena was in her junior year of high school and was living it up. She was at her boyfriend, Stefan's house, where a party was currently taking place. It was sort of like a 'Welcome to Junior Year' kind of party. _

_Her head felt like her head was going to explode any second now, and she couldn't find anyone. Caroline was off dancing with people and Stefan was nowhere to be seen. She saw the staircase to the left of her and smiled. She'd been in this house thousands of times; she would just go to Stefan's room and sleep it off. She stumbled up the stairs, constantly falling, but finally made it to the top. Now which door was Stefan's? There was a door to her left and one across from that, on her right. She shrugged and opened the door on the left. _

_It was too dark for her to see so she just walked over to the bed and fell on it. "Jesus!" she heard someone yell from the bed. "Who the hell is this?" he asked trying to move her hair from her face to see her._

"_Take a guess," she mumbled with a smirk. _

"_Get out Elena," Damon sighed._

"_You get out," she mumbled back. "I am just trying to sleep on Stefan's bed," she said matter-of-factly. _

"_Across the hall, idiot," Damon said with a roll of his eyes. _

"_But I don't feel like moving!" she complained. _

"_So get your drunk ass up here and sleep, I'll go somewhere else." She smiled as she climbed all the way up on Damon's bed and laid her head on his pillow. She felt the bed shift as he stood up._

"_Where you going?" she asked. "Are you going to party?"_

"_Why would I go party with a bunch of juniors? I'm 6 years older than all of you." _

"_Well don't go," she whined. "I need someone and I can't find Stefan."_

"_Fine," he gave in and went into bed next to her. "You reek of alcohol." He looked down at he and saw her eyes were closed but a smile played on her lips. He turned off the lamp on his bedside table and lay back down. Damn, was this awkward. He was lying in bed with his little brother's girlfriend. The bed shifted beside him as Elena sat up. In the dark he could barley make out what she was doing. She lifted her arms up and suddenly took her shirt off. "What the hell are you doing?" Damon asked sitting up._

"_I'm hot," she groaned._

"_Well put your fricking shirt back on!" he said handing it to her. She frowned and didn't put it back on; in fact, she just lay back down to sleep, leaving Damon in an awkward moment. _

Elena rolled her eyes as she brushed out her long wet hair. She dressed in a pair of jeans and a pink shirt. She walked down the hall to her daughter's room and woke her up. "Come on Hai, time to get up." Hailie groaned as she opened her eyes and sat up. "You're going to Aunt Bonnie's today," Elena told her with a smile. She picked Hailie up and dressed her in her clothes, then went to Parker's room and did the same to him.

Walking down the stairs, holding two sleepy kids, Elena walked into the kitchen. Damon was in there as well, holding a cup of coffee. "Want a cup?" he asked Elena.

"Yeah, sure," she nodded. Both kids walked over to the table and sat down. "Thanks," Elena said taking the cup of coffee Damon handed to her. "So, what're you doing today?"

Damon shrugged, "Probably hit up some old friends, go to the bar."

"Well, I'm taking them to Jeremy and Bonnie's and I'll be on my way to work," Elena informed him.

* * *

><p>"Be good, love you guys," Elena said giving both her kids a kiss before Jeremy took them inside. "We need to talk later Bon," Elena said to her friend before giving her a hug and saying goodbye.<p>

Elena walked over to her car and drove off to work. She worked as a receptionist in a doctor's office. She parked her car in her usually parking spot and walked into the office.

"Good morning Elena," Dr. Donovan greeted.

"Good morning Matt," Elena smiled sweetly.

"There's some paper work I need you to do too today, when you get the chance," he told her.

Elena nodded, "I'll get on it."

She walked over to her desk and picked up the folder that was full of the paper work she would have to complete for the day. She sighed while flipping through the papers. She felt her back pocket vibrate and grabbed her phone out of it. Who would be calling at 6:30 am anyway?

"Hello?" she asked. The other line was silent, she looked at the caller ID, and it was blocked. "Hello?" she repeated.

"How was her birthday?" a deep voice asked on the other line.

Elena felt her heart leap in her chest. "Stefan?" she barely asked.

"Did she get my gift?" he asked.

Tears strolled down Elena's face and she nodded. "Y-yeah, she got it. Stefan, where are you?"

"I gotta go."

"No, Stefan please," she begged. "Please just come home."

"Bye Elena," he said and a click was heard over the phone.

"No, Stefan!" Elena yelled. "Answer me now, god dammit!" She yelled, knowing that he had already ended the call. She slammed her phone down on her desk.

"Elena?" Matt asked. "Are you alright?"

"No," she said grabbing her purse. "I'm sorry Matt, but I have to go." She walked past him and rushed out of the building, leaving Matt puzzled. She got into her car and slammed the door. After getting into her seat she banged on the steering wheel, getting all of her frustration yet. If it was even possible, Elena felt her heart break even more. It finally hit her, Stefan wasn't returning, he was gone. And he didn't want to come back home to his family.

After starting her car, she sped out of the mostly empty parking lot and down the street to the bar. Hell, she needed a drink.


End file.
